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4600c video card and casing issues, PLEASE HELP 1

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Danilo22

Technical User
Jan 23, 2007
5
US
i have a dell 4600c computer but the graphics card i bought is horrible. It's a nvidia FX 5200. Is it possible to buy a EVGA e-GeForce 7900 GT KO Supercharged video card for my computer. I also want to know if i can buy a new case for my computer and put all of its current hardware in the new case. The case i had in mind was a Antec Nine Hundred.
 
The proposed video card is designed for a PCI Xpress slot, and your Dell has an AGP slot that's designed for a low profile AGP video card.
Also, the current power supply is only 160 watts, so upgrading to a more powerful AGP card may cause problems.
Finally, installing the existing components in a new case may also be problematic since Dell sometimes installs proprietary components, e.g. MB's, that will not fit in an aftermarket case.
 
so buying a video card for this computer isn't worth it? I just bought F.E.A.R. and i cant play because of my video card. If you think there is a low-profile video card can you please tell me?
 
Your system has a decent CPU and RAM, but unfortunately its case is small, and its power supply is weak.
This means that in order to possibly run F.E.A.R. at decent frame rates, you will definitely have to upgrade the current video card, and may also have to upgrade the power supply since the new video card may overpower it. But a Standard PS may not fit in the existing case, so that may also have to be replaced. And if the case is replaced, then the MB may not fit in the new case, which would also require replacing the MB.
And now you have a money pit situation.

FWIW, the most powerful low profile AGP video cards that I could find are the GeForce 6200 and the Radeon 9250. They are faster than your current GeForce 5200, but you may have to run F.E.A.R. at low game settings in order to get decent frame rates. However, even doing that may not enable your system to run the game to your satisfaction.
 
As an afterthought, gaming puts a PC's components into overdrive more than any other application, and running the most recent(and future) state-of-the-art games at decent frame rates with above minimum settings requires a powerful system.
So if you're a serious gamer, or plan to become one, then you have 2 options:
1- Upgrade most of your existing system's components.
2- Buy a dedicated gaming system.
And since both require spending some serious $, I suggest going with option 2. I've already done option 1, and it did not go smoothly at all, e.g., defective components had to be returned for replacements(I paid for the shipping), drivers sometimes did not load properly, the O/S had to be reinstalled, etc.
 
all rite well thank you. Your posts really helped me. thanks again
 
You're welcome. Good luck.
 
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